Category Archives: Business

Day 2130 – How Boundaries Have Changed My Life

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“The lines have fallen for me in pleasant places; indeed, I have a beautiful inheritance. Psalm 16:6”

I love this verse. Other versions, such as the NIV, say “boundary lines.” When I hear this verse, I don’t think “the rules that trap me from doing what I want.” I hear, “the boundaries that are there protecting me from harm.”

There are dozens of boundaries that Bret and I have establish and have acknowledged that God has placed in our lives. Here are a few that have helped me.

Other men – I am careful to not have private conversations with other men online or in person. I do not initiate them unless I must. I will include the guy’s wife, if I can. Even though I have no desire for anything other than friendship, I draw this line. A little conversation here, a little conversation there….and before I know it, if I’m not careful, a guy who is “just a friend” is becoming a confidant. If a guy messages me, I tell Bret about it. If necessary, I wait to respond to the guy until I can talk to Bret about what to say. You may think, oh, wow, that’s pretty extreme…but my marriage is the second most important thing in my life. I will defend its honor, purity and trust with every ounce of my being. A guy who is put off by my delayed response or even my cold manner is a small price to pay for my marriage. Having this boundary and being honest with Bret about who I talk to and about what has given us a high level of trust.

Phone notifications – I have turned off almost all of the notifications on my phone. I receive phone calls/voicemails, text messages, calendar notifications and my gmail (and this is only because of one of my jobs). There are no Facebook notifications or Twitter notifications or email notifications (my photography email in particular). I’ve read a lot about compartmentalizing my time…so I shut off that “need to be connected” and remind myself that there is nothing so major that can happen that it won’t wait until I check my email or Facebook….if it is, I’ll receive a call or a text. This has allowed me to truly enjoy my free time. I work when I’m “at work” and I enjoy myself when it’s time off.

Weekends – Since Bret started teaching, I have become fiercely against busy weekends. We may have a few commitments on one day, but I try to keep the other day clear. We don’t do much work on the weekends and I feel zero guilt about that. Again, if it’s that important, I’ll get a call or a text. It is incredibly energizing going into my week after a truly restful weekend. (I mean, look at how long this blog post is!)

Listening to sermons – I’ve been listening to sermons online for a while now, but I’m really trying to make them the very first thing I do. I am merely human, so I HAVE to have my cup of coffee before I can do anything worthwhile…even being happy towards my spouse. I’ve gotten great sleep on the floor…but I’ve found that those first few minutes coming from the dream world to the real world are a little harsher than they used to be. Thankfully, Bret is learning this quickly and just this morning, kept calling to me to get up and had a cup of coffee all ready to go. Within just a few minutes, I was all smiles and started my first sermon. It is such a great way to start the day. While I listen, I put together puzzles and can feel my brain loosening up and I am energized. It’s a happy thing to know my greatest need (being reminded of the gospel) is met at the beginning of my day.

Saying no – I have a pretty good idea of all of my boundaries, listed and not listed. I know what will help me stay in those boundaries and what will be unwise to do. The best thing I’ve learned in keeping in my boundaries is to say no. Those two letters hold a lot of power. The power to keep my mind pure, my heart loving Christ, my time to be used for growth and not destruction and a whole host of other things. If you want to see a big change in your life, start to say no.

What about you? How have boundaries helped you?

Here’s a boundary that kept us from falling in a really big hole. šŸ™‚

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Did you like what you read? Here’s some ways you can support us and this blog!
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Day 2099 – Phone Marketing Advice

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I’ve had my cell phone number for 16+ years. I’ve used that number for my business for 10+ years. I’ve also started doing some of those survey sites and other ways to earn cash, gift cards and miles. (e-rewards is my current favorite because I can transfer my balance to my Southwest Rapid Rewards account.) I’ve also gotten on call lists from looking at apartments. Just this week, I’ve gotten 19 marketing calls. It got me thinking about how you can get MY attention when you call and how YOU can get your potential client’s attention.

How to get my attention, i.e. get me to call you back or take ANY action besides listening to and deleting your voice mail:

– Remind me who you are. If I looked at your apartment, tell me where it is. Tell me something I mentioned when I inquired.

– Show me that you remember me. If I wore a Batman shirt, you better make a note on my account and mention it when you call. Personalize me. Let me know I’m more than someone on your “to call” list.

– Give me a discount or some other reason to call you back. If I happen to be looking to purchase your product at some point, give me a reason to think more seriously about it now.

– Give me some other options to get ahold of you. Personally, I HATE the phone. Hate. I’m talking serious anxiety sometimes if I have to make a simple call. (I may need to spend some time really looking into what that’s all about, but for now, avoidance is the name of the game!) Give me a website to look at, give me a number to text you back, give me the option to press 1 to call back.

– Ask me my preferred method of contact when I meet you/fill out your form. If you took just a few moments to find this out about me, you wouldn’t waste your time calling me.

– Stop calling me if I don’t call you back after 2-3 attempts.

– If you’re selling me SEO services, please don’t say something like, “want to be found on Google? You need us!” I’m willing to bet you found me on Google…and I know some of my search terms are ranked pretty high. Tell me what makes you different from the 10 other SEO service people I’ve heard from this week via email or phone.

– Do a little research on me. Since I’ve had a public business for ten years, there’s a lot about me out there, this blog is a big hint into who I am. I mean, if you called me and offered a free superhero shirt or subscription to Loot Crate, you’ll have me saying “take my money!” And here’s a bonus hint on this one – I would then become a BIG brand broadcaster for you. I love sharing with others brands that are awesome. Give me a reason to do so and I will be pretty loyal.

– Guys, I can Google your number when you call me. I’ll know if you’re trying to sell me something. Every business should understand this and know what comes up when your number is Googled (with dashes).

– Make it fun. This one, hands down, is how you win me over.

Well, what about you? What phone marketing tips do you have?

In honor of phones, I’m sharing my hubby’s classic cell phone. šŸ™‚

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Did you like what you read? Here’s some ways you can support us and this blog!
Join our Facebook group, Planning an Epic Road Trip on Any Budget
Join the Journey With The G’s email list (bonus – you get my Epic Road Trip Budget spreadsheet)
Buy my book, Planning an Epic Road Trip on any Budget.
Buy my book, Trusting God With 2 Cents: 22 Days To Becoming A Successful Christian Business Owner.
Shop on Amazon (no additional cost to you, this gives us a percentage of what you order).
Check out our resources page.
Subscribe to our YouTube Channel

Day 2080 – What I’m Reading Right Now

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I love having a ton of books to read at a time. One little “productivity tip” I’ve found helpful for me is to have 1-2 books that are non-fiction/work books and then a fun book, read a chapter in each and then repeat that for as many books as I have. Here’s my current list!

What Motivates Me: Put Your Passions to Work – Adrian Gostick & Chester Elton – I’m only a chapter in, but I love the topic so far. It talks about what gets you really jazzed about work. So good.

Unlocking Potential – Michael Simpson – This is a great book on coaching and has been making my heart sing so far! I’ve realized recently I have coaching tendencies that I never verbalized before. Boy do I love helping people!

Insurgent – Veronica Roth – This is one of my fun books. I like to reread some books before I see the movie and young adult trilogies are at the top of that list.

Reading Like A Writer – Francine Prose – This has been a really helpful book so far. It’s been great to “get permission” to read more. šŸ™‚

Remote: Office Note Required – Jason Fried & David Heinemeier Hansson – I love the guys over at Basecamp! This is a great read, much like Rework. I love the simplicity of reading and “duh” moments I get from their books. This one has been great for learning about working remotely as our society moves more and more towards that.

Youtility: Why Smart Marketing Is About Help Not Hype – Jay Baer – I randomly heard a webinar by Jay and was just blown away by what he had to say. Basically, his message is that by giving away a ton of information and being helpful without expecting something in return, you are actually becoming more desirable as a business. Love his message!

What about you, what’s in your current stack of books?

p.s. I’ve already added a few more to this stack! Heh heh…

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Day 2062 – Eating The Same Breakfast Everyday – or – Productivity Tips

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A few days back, I read an article called “7 ways Iā€™m minimizing decision fatigue in my daily life.” I’m so glad I found this blog! The modern Mrs. Darcy talks about life, reading, balancing life and everything in between (so obviously right up my alley!) Anyways, on the linked post, she talks about how to maximize creativity. Through some other books I’m reading and the insights she had, I started to apply the advice (which we know is the most important part of learning).

– I’ve started eating the same thing for breakfast. This has definitely helped me in the morning…or mid-morning, lol, I don’t like eating right away! It’s great going to the fridge and knowing exactly what I’m going to eat. I may change this up on a week to week/grocery trip to grocery trip, but this week it’s been great. (See below for my current breakfast!)

– Prioritizing my day to what’s important to me. I recently read The Big Leap and friends, in some ways it was truly life changing. It talks about what holds us back from making big leaps in our business and personal life. He shared a story about a writer who was having trouble finding time to write after caring for her family and home. He challenged her by saying she wasn’t putting the priority on writing. That hit home and I realized I haven’t been putting the priority on my book. It’s been low on my priority list in terms of actually writing. I redid my to-do list to reflect my priorities. I’ve done a full day of following it and it’s been wonderful. My day looks like this:

Devos
Write for 60 minutes
Read for 60 minutes
Dream about my business and life
Client work
Workout
Shower (yes, I actually put taking a shower on my to-do list…)
Blog
Calendar reminders
More client work
Various other tasks

– Using dreaming now. I mentioned a few posts back that I was planning a trip to Disney World. While planning last night, I started thinking, wow, I could take a “rest day,” set up shop in the hotel coffee shop and write. I mean, WOW, what better place for inspiration than at Disney! I got really excited about that. But today it hit me, why can’t I write like I’m there now? I mean, what is writing? Essentially just taking something from your brain and putting it on paper. Why couldn’t I close my eyes, imagine what it would be like to be sitting in a cafe in Florida and write from that inspiration? I won’t lie, it churned the creative juices and I can’t wait to see what happens when I sit down to write.

– Tell others about your plan for the day. Accountability is SO important to actually getting things done. Telling Bret what I’m working on is so helpful. I know when he asks “what did you do today?” it’s not out of accusation or demand, but out of love and encouragement. I say it all the time, but I wouldn’t be where I am today without him. Love that guy.

– Make your day reflect YOU. You can’t be productive if you’re following someone else’s productivity plan. Just because someone is super productive first thing in the morning doesn’t mean that you will be too. Don’t force yourself to get out of bed and be tired all day just because it works for someone else. If you are on fire at 10 p.m., construct your day around that. This is especially important for entrepreneurs. You have control over your schedule. Sure, there are a few things that have to be at certain times. I mean, your bride won’t change her wedding timeline from 3 p.m. – 11 p.m. to 10 p.m. – 5 a.m. just because that’s when you’re “on.”….well, if she’s your kind of bride, maybe she will! But there are ways to make your schedule work for you.

What about you? What productivity tips work for you?

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Did you like what you read? Here’s some ways you can support us and this blog!
Join our Facebook group, Planning an Epic Road Trip on Any Budget
Join the Journey With The G’s email list (bonus – you get my Epic Road Trip Budget spreadsheet)
Buy my book, Planning an Epic Road Trip on any Budget.
Buy my book, Trusting God With 2 Cents: 22 Days To Becoming A Successful Christian Business Owner.
Shop on Amazon (no additional cost to you, this gives us a percentage of what you order).
Check out our resources page.
Subscribe to our YouTube Channel